Street Fight Daily: Whisper Tracks Locations, iPads Without NFC

Street Fight Daily: Whisper Tracks Locations, iPads Without NFC

A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology…

How the ‘Safest Place on the Internet’ Tracks Its Users (Guardian)
Whisper app that was intended to be a safe haven for anonymity is exploiting a vast library of texts, photographs and, in many cases, the location of their authors. The company denies this, pointing to its policy of not collecting information that would easily identify them.

How Apple Pay Will Work With the New iPads (Mashable)
Apple revealed more details about its upcoming mobile payment service Apple Pay, but the company also made a very important distinction: Only iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus users are currently able to access Apple Pay in retail stores — but not owners of the newly announced iPad Air 2 and iPad mini 3.

A Local Social Network That Stays Indoors (Street Fight)
New York-based MyCoop has created an online platform for neighbors to chat and broadcast messages. Each building can create a multipurpose chatroom that can be used to sell a couch before moving out or to announce a social event or to broadcast a safety alert.

Most Airbnb Rentals In New York Are Illegal (Quartz)
New York State Attorney General Eric Schneidermann is taking a shot at Airbnb. His report on the short-term rental service released today, using four and a half years of Airbnb data, shows that 72% of its rentals in New York are in violation of zoning regulations or other laws.

Introducing the Local Marketing Adoption Curve (Search Engine Watch)
Jon Schepke: By taking a phased crawl, walk, run approach to building a comprehensive, cross-functional local marketing program, brands can be more visible, relevant, and engaging in the eyes of their consumers and, ultimately, drive customer acquisition across hundreds to thousands of locations.

Amazon Confirms It Will Deliver Fresh Groceries in New York City (Recode)
Amazon’s grocery delivery business is launching in New York City on Friday, the company said, bringing the service to the East Coast for the first time, as the retail giant aggressively pursues a cut of the $600 billion grocery industry.

10 Trends In Local Media That Every Marketer Must Know (Search Engine Land)
It’s the time of year when businesses start looking at their marketing plans for 2015, so I thought it would be good to take a step back and look at the trends that will drive local media and marketing programs next year.Here are 10 trends every local advertiser needs to think about during preparations for 2015.